“The Bear Family
& Me” has a much more personal approach than your average nature program,
bringing the audience into the experience by allowing Scottish wildlife
filmmaker Gordon Buchanan to become part of the story. Buchanan travels to the
wilds of Minnesota
for a close encounter with a group of wild black bears over the course of
several seasons, witnessing a number of remarkable scenarios first-hand.
Devastating in its ability to inspire empathy for these specific creatures,
“The Bear Family & Me” could very well impact each viewer’s feelings about
the feared and hunted animals.

Buchanan puts
himself at the forefront of the research as he pairs up with a local scientist
and animal activist, learning how to gain the trust of specific bears and their
cubs. Though these animals are wild, they have been tagged for scientific
research that allows Buchanan to experience their way of life firsthand. Sadly,
being used for scientific research does not protect them from hunters, making
this a tense season to endure after having spent time with Buchanan getting to
know the specific personalities of individual bears.

Over the course
of three hour-long episodes, we are brought into Buchanan’s experience earning
the trust of young mother bear Lily and her solitary cub, Hope. We witness the
drama as they are separated, then reunited once again. Conservation controversy
follows this type of interaction with wild animals, but viewers will likely
find this a welcome change from the detached manner of most scientific
research.

Entertainment Value:
8.5/10

Quality of
Filmmaking: 8/10

Historical
Significance: 6.5/10

Special Features: 0/10

Language: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: BBC Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: April 8, 2014

Run Time: 360 minutes (Earthflight) 90 minutes (Winged Planet)

“Earth Flight” and Winged
Planet

Ever since the
remarkable popularity of the “Planet Earth” series, nature programs have become
even more plentiful. Every variety of animal (including humans) have been the
subject of nature special and series, making it difficult for one to stand
above the rest without a unique aspect of the filmmaking process. For “Planet
Earth” it was advances in filmmaking technology that brought amazing images
never before seen, and “Earthflight” swings for the fences with a similar
attempt. Unfortunately, there are still kinks to be worked out with the
technology used in this program, making it more admirable in effort than
outcome.

The unique
visuals brought by this series come from the birds themselves, who act as
cameramen as well as stars of the show. With small cameras equipped to the
birds, we are permitted a literal bird’s eye view of the soaring journey these
majestic creatures take. Though this sounds fantastic in theory, the execution
is a bit shakier than desired. Though the images have occasional impact, the
flapping of the wings can make for a jarringly unsteady amount of camera work.
Some of the best shots of the series abandon this method for more traditional
nature photography, much of which has been displayed in similar form elsewhere.

In some ways, it
is the making of this documentary nature program which is more impressive than
the end result. With a series of drones, paragliders and remote-control
microflight planes, “Earthflight” was filmed over a four year period across the
globe. There are six episodes total, dealing with different regions and birds
in each of the sections contained on two discs. For those lacking the patience
of sitting through the 370 minutes of material, there is also a feature film
called Winged Planet available which
edits the best of “Earthflight” into a concise 94 minutes. Both are narrated by
actor David Tennant (Harry Potter
franchise, “Doctor Who”).

Entertainment Value:
7.5/10

Quality of
Filmmaking: 7/10

Historical
Significance: 7/10

Special Features: 0/10

Language: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: BBC Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: April 8, 2014

Run Time: 220 minutes

Extreme Bears

Extreme Bears is
made up of three nature specials about bears, each individual and unrelated to
each other but combined in an effort to create a sellable package. These
features include the two-part series “Great Bear Stakeout,” as well as the
technologically driven solitary specials of “Polar Bear Battlefield” and
“Bears- Spy in the Woods.” While each has assets worth mentioning, none are
impressive enough alone to warrant a DVD purchase. Bear fanatics may enjoy the
footage, though it is only the technological advancements of two specials and
the dangerous proximity of the third which sets these shows apart from dozens
of past efforts.

“Great Bear
Stakeout” is a two-part special on a documentary expedition in the Alaskan
wild, with filmmakers often getting dangerously close to the action. This
special has more of a narrative for the bears, with a few memorable
personalities in the group of beasts. This also works against the show,
however, when the behavior of the bears is often brutal and unsympathetic.

“Polar Bear
Stakeout” is even less sympathetic of a narrative, mostly because of the
distance from the subjects. This series relies much more heavily upon
technology to tell the stories, including some cutting edge graphics that can
show the behavior of the bears. This would be a show better suited for a
scientific mind, though this does not mean that it is void of some of the
action and spectacle.

“Bears – Spy in
the Woods” gathers footage from bears all over the world, and it does so with the
use of camouflaged roving cameras. They are meant to blend with the environment
in order to capture footage of the animals in private, but some of the show’s
best footage comes from the moments when the bears’ curiosity causes them to discover
the cameras. They series could have been altered slightly and called “Bears vs.
Robots,” though it is hardly much of a battle. Only the trash can camera seems
to escape, which is odd considering you would think it to be the first knocked
over.